Somerton Historic District

Somerton is a small rural village district on the southern edge of Suffolk, Virginia, covering about 236 acres of homes, outbuildings and farm fields. English settlement began in the 17th century, when Thomas Jernigan received a 250-acre grant in 1668. The buildings are one and two-story frame structures from the late 18th to early 20th centuries, in vernacular versions of styles from Federal to Folk Victorian. Key buildings include the Washington Smith Ordinary, an inn that also served as a family home, the Robert R. Smith House, the Langston House, and the c.1880 Somerton United Methodist Church with its cemetery. Historically the village had a school, a Masonic lodge, general stores, a postmaster and a physician. It was listed because it is the oldest surviving rural community in Suffolk and still conveys its historic layout, farmland setting and character.